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TECHNOLOGY

Technology improvements in the last three academic years: Both buildings at the Carlson School include the latest 802.11n wireless connectivity, and the classrooms are equipped with state-of-the-art audio and visual technology. The three student computer labs were updated in the summer of 2009 with new Lenovo ThinkCentre M58p desktop computers with 19-inch LCD displays. The labs offer a full suite of business software, and wireless printing capability. In the Hanson Hall building each breakout room includes a plasma screen for student collaboration.
Amount spent: $4,800,000.00

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B-SCHOOL ALUMNI

Living MBA alumni: 15,268
Active MBA alumni clubs: 1
Countries in which MBA clubs exist: 1
Living MBA alumni who gave in past year: 5 %
Mean gift from MBA alumni: $290.00
Median gift from MBA alumni: $69.00
Did school receive an individual gift in excess of $10 million in the past academic year? No
Does the main university offer career placement services for alumni? Yes
Does the main university have an alumni networking Web site? Yes
University alumni networking site: http://www.minnesotaalumni.org/s/1118/index.aspx
Does the B-School have an alumni networking Web site? Yes
Business school alumni networking site: http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/alumni/
Do current MBA students have access to an alumni database? Yes

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CAREER SERVICES

Do part-time MBAs have access to career development office?
Yes
If yes, at what point in the degree process are part-time MBA students able to use the service?
At any time
Are part-time MBAs permitted to interview for full-time jobs? Yes
Are part-time students included in resume drops? Yes
Organizations that send the most participants to the part-time MBA program:
Target Corporation 31
Medtronic, Inc. 8
General Mills, Inc. 7
3M 5
Best Buy Company, Inc. 5

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After starting the program, I approached my day-today responsibilities at work in a much more professional manner.

The program had a great balance of theoretical and practical business education.

The part-time program is great because the students in class bring real-world business problems to discuss, and they come from a variety of backgrounds.

Some instructors were better than others at making content applicable to real-world situations aside from mere case studies. Some instructors inspired me to learn about their fields of expertise, but others dragged me through a PowerPoint-heavy curriculum. Most were solid, but there were a couple who didn't seem qualified.

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If I could improve anything, I would suggest increasing interaction among class members. Friendly debates would be good, but they were very rare in my program. One of the best classes I had was a negotiations class in which the students were teamed up to develop negotiation strategies. The students had actual negotiations with other groups, and that format was really beneficial.

I wish the professors had encouraged more discussion. At times, it was a challenge to get discussions going during class.

There was too much time spent on group projects and not enough focus on application. It was difficult to work in groups because we were part-time students, which meant it was often inconvenient to find meeting times.

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The program offers a variety of social and networking opportunities, such as a First Friday networking series and a First Tuesday lunch speaker series. There are barbecues, baseball games, guest speakers, dinners, and more&all good for networking.

The international component was great; it allowed students to spend two weeks abroad learning about a country's business and companies.

There was a noticeable difference between the quality of teaching of faculty and adjunct instructors. But, luckily, most of my classes were taught by faculty members.

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Most professors have spent time in the business world and had great real-world examples to use in class to help enrich the material.



It was difficult to build a sense of community, especially given the conflicting work schedules of the students. Also, most of the networking events and career seminars were during the day and catered primarily to full-time students.

Beer in the cafeteria!

Sometimes the material from one class to another was redundant, and sometimes the material repeated what I learned in my undergrad business program.